Soldiering in the 20th & 21st Centuries
In the first half of the twentieth century,1914 - 23, the Irish people endured ten years of intense military activity, including participation in a world War, an urban insurrection, a guerrilla War and finally a bitter Civil War. Ireland changed from a country that was a source of foot soldiers for the British Army to an Independent nation with its own armed forces.
The result was a new nation bearing both the hopes of many of its citizens, and the pain left by the wars that had brought it into being. The experience of individual Irish men, women and children during these years are described in galleries 5-8 in Soldiers & Chiefs.
Explore these galleries